1. Field of the Invention
This invention is directed to bow string releases and is specifically directed to a caliper motion bow string release having mountable sear elements.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Bow string releases have grown in popularity for target shooting and for hunting. A good release provides uniform release of the bow string and increases accuracy. The release is either hand held or strapped to the wrist and has a trigger which permits the archer to release the string. Typically, such devices employ a pivotal finger that engages the bow string, the finger being pivoted to a release position for releasing the string. Releases of this type are illustrated in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,066,060; 3,898,974; and 3,954,095. It is also known to use ball elements in place of the pivotal finger to retain and release the string wherein the ball elements are held by a head and retained in position by a yoke or sleeve. A device of this type is illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 4,403,594. Discreet sear element releases such as the ball releases have gained wide-spread popularity. Examples of discreet element sear releases are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,926,835; 5,070,854; 5,076,251; and 5,078,116. Most of these devices employs a yoke-type mechanism with an axial motion trigger.
While such devices have proven to be very acceptable and very desirable, there remains a percentage of archers who prefer the caliper-type movement such as that shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,407,260. Specifically, the caliper type motion includes a pair of elongated jaws mounted for pivotal movement within the head of the release, wherein the jaws pivot outwardly when the trigger is pulled to release the bow string. Variations of caliper-type releases are shown and described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,076,251; and 5,078,116, and include discreet sear elements.
Use of discreet sear elements are desirable from a manufacturing standpoint because this allows the sear elements to be precision formed to conform to the shape of the bow string while reducing the overall cost of the release by also permitting the closure mechanism, the head, the body and other elements to be made of less expensive materials. When the closure mechanism and the sear are integral components, the need for precision conflicts with efforts at cost control.
Thus, there remains a need for a caliper motion bow string release which is adapted for receiving discreet sear elements, permitting a caliper motion while incorporating precision sears which may be adapted to conform to the bow string and relieve the fatigue on the string caused by repeated use of the bow string release mechanism.
In addition, bow string releases have recently been developed which permit the bow string to be engaged both above and below the nock of an arrow. An example of such a release is shown and described in my co-pending application Ser. No. 07/758,779 filed on Sep. 12, 1991. While this has proven to be beneficial in holding the string in a vertical position for providing better engagement with the arrow nock, it is required that the release mechanism be pulled in a linear fashion in axial alignment with the arrow to assure that the string is not cocked. If the string is off the vertical line, the nock can fall out of the mechanism, or result in a misfire. Therefore, there remains a need to provide discreet sear elements in such a mechanism, wherein the elements can be mounted for movement independently of the head to assure accurate firing of the arrow.